Young people are being priced out of the property market, a paper published by the Housing Authority has warned, suggesting Gozo could offer a cheaper alternative.   The paper concluded that “housing, be it rental or purchase, is unlikely to be a realistic prospect for young people in Malta were it not for government intervention or family assistance, unless they marry or cohabit, or relocate to Gozo”. The paper, published earlier this week, was commissioned by the authority and written by economists Marie Briguglio and Glen Spiteri. Young Maltese people leave home considerably late It argues that young Maltese people leave home considerably late in comparison to other EU countries, mostly due to a lack of affordability. Maltese are among the oldest in the EU to leave the parental home and they do it well into adulthood. In 2020, the average Maltese person flew the nest at 30, the third oldest among member states and roughly four years above the EU average While a young couple on average earnings in Malta can afford a broad range of rental options, the same is not true for other youths.  An identical couple on minimum earnings or a single young person with average earnings has...

Two people were killed and 14 others wounded, several seriously, in shootings near bars in central Oslo, Norwegian police said Saturday. Police said a suspect had been arrested following the shootings, which occurred around 1 am in three locations, including a gay bar, close together in the centre of the Norwegian capital. Police reported two dead and 14 wounded and said two weapons had been seized. "Now everything indicates that there was only one person who committed this act," police official Tore Barstad told a press briefing. Police numbers had however been reinforced in the capital to deal with other incidents, he added, without wishing to specify whether it was a terrorist act. Police received the first reports at 1.14 am and the suspect was arrested five minutes later, he said. The shootings happened near the London Pub gay club, the Herr Nilsen jazz club and a takeaway food outlet. Police officials gathered to consider the impact of the shooting on the staging of Oslo's Pride march which is due to take place on Saturday afternoon. Heavily armed police equipped with bulletproof vests and helmets were patrolling the scene of the shootings. "He looked very determined about...

These are the top stories in Malta's newspapers on Saturday morning.  Times of Malta leads with a report on a new Housing Authority paper that warns youths are being priced out of the property market - suggesting Gozo could offer an alternative.  The paper also features a story about how criminal charges against two senior court officials over safety shortcomings will likely be dropped after an administrative fine was paid out.  The Malta Independent leads with news that the European Commission on Friday recommended war-torn Ukraine and its neighbour Moldova be formally named "candidates” for joining the EU. In-Nazzjon runs with comments by Opposition leader Bernard Grech who says European Parliament president Roberta Metsola is making Malta proud. The paper also places a court report on its front page about a disabled doctor who was awarded compensation after he was manhandled by senior Mater Dei Hospital staff.  L-orizzont leads with comments by Prime minister Robert Abela at the latest European Council meeting in Brussels this week. He is raising concerns about the sustainability of sanctions on Russia. 

Former Labour MP Jean Claude Micallef is vying to head a body representing top-flight football clubs, running against his old boss former prime minister Joseph Muscat.     Announcing the move on Facebook, Micallef appeared to take a swipe at Muscat, saying he could not let the reputation of Malta’s football clubs be sullied.  “I took this step today because I can never allow the reputation of Maltese clubs to be tarnished,” he wrote on Facebook. “This association is set up for individuals to serve it and improve it and not any other way. I have heard you and reacted with respect towards the footballing family that I am proud to form part of,” Micallef added.  Times of Malta first reported on Tuesday that the former prime minister was vying to take over the running of the Malta Professional Football Clubs Association, a body made up of the presidents of Malta’s top-flight football clubs.   Clubs then decided to formally approach Muscat to be the next chairman of the MPFCA, however, sources said at least two clubs of the 12 members had reserved the right to put forward other names to be approached for the position. It is understood that Valletta and Gudja are exploring the...

Gozitan construction tycoon Joseph Portelli may not be a saint, but in his hometown of Nadur he enjoys his own religious painting.   A likeness of Portelli, painted before 2019, caught the eye of passers-by in Nadur this week as it was erected in one of the main streets of the Gozitan town for the feast of  St Peter and St Paul.   The pavaljun (standard), was painted by Nadur artist Adonai Camilleri Cauchi.  Photo: Facebook. Contacted on Saturday morning he told Times of Malta that Portelli’s likeness had been used to depict St John the Evangelist.   He said that he had painted all the apostles for the Nadur feast as he was artistically responsible for decorating some of the village’s streets for the religious parish feast.   All the apostles, he said, had been painted using the likeness of festa helpers and donors.  Joseph Portelli. File photo. Portelli, arguably the most prolific Gozitan property developer, is a patron of more than just Nadur arts.   In April, he scored a debut goal for football club Nadur Youngsters, converting a penalty 11 minutes from time to help the newly-crowned GFA Division One champions to a 1-1 draw against Kerċem Ajax.

Staff in old people’s homes will receive training to provide palliative care to residents thanks to a new pilot project. Providing in-house palliative care at the homes will avoid the residents having to travel to and from other medical institutions to receive treatment during the last days of their life,  Active Aging Minister Jo Etienne Abela said as he announced details of the project on Saturday.  The project has been launched at the Mtarfa home for the elderly, where a team of 19 multidisciplinary healthcare professionals have received training to provide end-of-life care at the facility. As well as doctors and nurses, the palliative care team includes psychotherapists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists and even a spiritual advisor. “This is an important project as most of the residents share the sentiment of wanting to remain in the place they call home,” CEO of Active Ageing and Community care Renzo Degabriele said. “They do not wish to spend their final days away from home. With this project, we will be able to offer the highest level of care during their last days.”  Abela said that the project was also offering staff at care homes the...

Britain's railway system once again came to a virtual standstill on Saturday as union workers staged their third walkout of the week in strike action billed as the biggest in decades. Tens of thousands of rail workers staged the latest day-long walkout over pay and job security, hampering weekend plans for those already hit by strikes on Tuesday and Thursday.  Only around a fifth of services is set to operate on heavily reduced hours, with those still running starting much later in the morning than usual and set to end as early as 6:30 pm. The RMT rail union insists this week's actions are necessary as wages have failed to keep pace with UK inflation, which has hit a 40-year high and is on course to keep rising. It also wants the threat of compulsory redundancies withdrawn. RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said its members are "standing up for all working people trying to get a pay rise and some job security". "In a modern economy, workers need to be properly rewarded for their work, enjoy good conditions and have the peace of mind that their job will not be taken away from them," he added. With Britain suffering from rocketing inflation and stagnant economic growth, the...

Some €400,000 in grants will be split among eight local councils to be spent on accessibility and mobility projects.   The funding was announced on Saturday morning by parliamentary secretary for local councils Alison Zerafa Civelli.  The St Julian’s local council will be spending the money on the purchase of an electric van. The Valletta council will be introducing accessible public conveniences in Hastings Garden.  In Senglea, the funds will be used to give access to a lift, while in Sta Lucija the council will be erecting a marque in an accessible garden.   The Rabat local council will be buying an accessible van for people with disability.  In Gozo, the Għajnsielem council will be installing bollards to make pedestrian areas safer.  Finally, Għarb will put the money towards an upgrade of some of its roads and squares. 

A man suspected of being a drug trafficker has been arrested following a police operation which yielded some €180,000 worth of cocaine.   In a statement on Saturday, the police said that a 32-year-old man from Paola had been arrested over suspected cocaine trafficking.   The man was arrested on Friday evening, shortly after 6 pm. Police said they had been monitoring the man’s movements and arrested him while he was driving on Barrani Road,  Żejtun.  A search of his vehicle uncovered 2kg of suspected cocaine.   The seized drugs have a street value of around €180,000, police said.   The man is expected to be arraigned in court at around 1.30 pm before duty magistrate Claire Stafrace Zammit. 

Children, parents, and divers all headed up to Ċirkewwa to watch as eight baby sharks were released into the Mediterranean sea on Saturday morning.  The release was organised by NGO Sharklab Malta and the Malta National Aquarium. Today’s release marks Sharklab-Malta’s 350th successful shark release and the first public release event in the past three years.  Two Nursehound sharks, better known as the greater spotted catshark, and six Lesser-spotted catsharks were released.  Baby sharks being placed in a smaller container to then be released into the sea. Video: Giulia Magri How did the sharks end up in Malta? The shark eggs were rescued by Shark Lab Malta volunteers, who would visit Maltese fish markets and report the number of shark species that are there, and check whether or not they have egg cases inside them. The egg cases are then taken out and brought to the Malta National Aquarium, Qawra, where there they are taken care of, and after six to eight months, hatch naturally.  Lesser-spotted cat sharks just before being placed in a container to be taken out at sea. Photo: Giulia Magri After the eggs hatch, the sharks spend another six months to one year, being fed and taken...

A 17-year-old girl reported missing last week has still not been found, the police said on Saturday.   In a statement, police said that Doaa Kasem had first been reported missing on June 16.  She was last seen in Sta Venera. After more than a week of searching, she has still not been located.   Anyone who knows her whereabouts is being asked to contact police headquarters or any police station or phone 21 224001 / 119, even anonymously.

Joseph Muscat is the only candidate for the position of chairman of the Malta Professional Football Clubs Association. The clubs’ body revealed the news in a statement where it also made it clear that it has no intention of appointing a full-time chief executive officer but is planning to install a chairman from outside the Premier League clubs to help out in the transition phase that is stipulated by the Malta FA strategy. The MPFCA, the governing body that represents the Premier League clubs, caught the headlines this week after they decided to approach the former prime minister to take over the post of chairman, even though two clubs had reserved the right to approach other persons for the position. Clubs had until Friday, to submit their nominations and the MPFCA said that Muscat was the only candidate put forward for the post of chairman. On Friday night, former Labour MP Jean Claude Micallef issued a statement announcing that he had submitted his nomination for the post of chief executive officer of the MPFCA. “I am convinced that the Premier League should move away from the Malta FA and imminently appoint a Chief Executive so that he can implement the direction...

Singer Moira Stafrace has opened up about what it was like to lose her husband Chris as well as both of her parents in the space of a year.  Stafrace, who shared her story as part of a funding campaign for Hospice, described how she was able to find inner strength partially because of the help the organisation were able to provide to her and her family in some of their darkest hours.  Moira and her husband Chris Scicluna represented Malta in the Eurovision Song contest in 1994 with the song More than Love.  He passed away in February at the age of 62, after having suffered from cancer.  “I had heard of Hospice as we had performed at a couple of their fundraising events,” Stafrace said.  “It had never occurred to me that I would need their services at the time, certain things do not occur to you because you never really know what it’s like until it affects your life.”  She came to know the raft of services that Hospice have to offer after both her mother and Chris began to suffer from cancer.  “Hospice had helped me from day one with my mum. I needed psychological help through therapy and Hospice found me someone immediately,” she said.  “She was a sweet woman, very...

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers pledged on Saturday they would not interfere with international efforts to distribute aid to tens of thousands of people affected by this week's deadly earthquake. Even before Wednesday's quake the country was in the grip of a humanitarian crisis, with aid flows and financial assistance severely curtailed since the Taliban's return to power. The 5.9-magnitude quake struck hardest in the rugged east along the border with Pakistan, as people slept, killing over 1,000 and leaving thousands more homeless. Aid organisations have complained in the past that Taliban authorities have tried to divert aid to areas and people that supported their hardline insurgency -- or even seized goods to distribute themselves and claim the credit. But Khan Mohammad Ahmad, a senior official in hard-hit Paktika province, said international organisations helping relief efforts would not be interfered with. "Whether it is WFP, UNICEF or any other organisation... the international community or the United Nations... they will do the distribution by themselves," said Khan. "The responsible people from the Islamic Emirate are here... our members will be always with them (to...

A man, arrested on Friday over suspected drug trafficking after two kilos of cocaine were found inside his car, was granted bail after pleading not guilty upon his arraignment on Saturday. Liam Cassar, a 32-year old Paola resident, was targeted in an operation by the Drug Squad following confidential information about a suspected drug deal. Police monitoring the suspect tracked down and blocked his vehicle at around 6:00pm on Friday while the man was driving along Tal-Barrani Road, Zejtun. A search of the vehicle yielded two kilos of a white substance, suspected of being cocaine, which police found on the front seat wrapped up in garbage bags and placed inside a cardboard box. The street value of the drug stood at around €180,000, the police said. The suspect was taken into custody and was questioned. Within less than 24 hours, he was escorted to court and charged with possessing the drug under circumstances indicating that it was not intended solely for personal use. Under interrogation he had insisted that he was not aware of the drug in his possession, thinking that the package contained only money. The accused pleaded not guilty to the solitary charge of aggravated...

Raiders Lija have made another important summer signing as they announce the arrival of 2007-born Francesca Bartolo. Bartolo’s arrival will add more goal threat for Raiders following the arrival of another highly-rated player in Lexine Farrugia from Birkirkara. Last season, Bartolo was captain of Mtarfa Żebbuġ in the U-16’s women’s league. The clinical player took the championship by a storm after netting a staggering 31 goals in just 12 games, topping the scoring charts. Continue reading this article on Sports Desk. 

A 12-year-old-girl, Sharona Grima, last seen in Xagħra, Gozo on 22 June has been reported missing. Anyone with information on her whereabouts has been asked to contact police headquarters or any police station or phone 21 224001 / 119, even anonymously.    

World number one Iga Swiatek said Saturday she is “overwhelmed” to see Serena Williams back at Wimbledon, one year after the US legend limped away from the All England Club. Williams, a seven-time champion at the tournament, and still chasing an elusive 24th Grand Slam title, will be playing her first singles match since her tearful, injury-enforced withdrawal in the first round in 2021. “I saw her yesterday, I was pretty overwhelmed,” said Swiatek, the recently-crowned French Open champion. “I didn’t know how to react. I wanted to meet her. I saw that she had so many people around her. I don’t know her team. It was pretty weird.  “But just seeing her around is great because she’s such a legend, there’s nobody that has done so much in tennis.” Continue reading this article on SportsDesk, the sports website of the Times of Malta

Norwegian police have arrested a man suspected of "Islamist terrorism" after two people were killed and 21 wounded in shootings near a gay bar in the capital Oslo on Saturday, causing the city's Pride march to be cancelled. The suspect, who was already known to the anti-terrorism services, was arrested quickly after the shooting started around 1:00 am (2300 GMT Friday) in central Oslo. Norway's domestic intelligence service PST, which is responsible for counter-terrorism, said it was treating the attack as "an act of Islamist terrorism". The suspect "has a long history of violence and threats," PST's chief Roger Berg said. The suspect had been on the PST's radar "since 2015 in connection with concerns about his radicalisation" and membership "in an Islamist extremist network", Berg told a press conference. Intelligence services spoke to the suspect last month, but did not consider him to have "violent intentions", Berg said.  He added that the PST was also aware the suspect had "difficulties with his mental health". The suspect's lawyer, John Christian Elden, told Norwegian news agency NTB he expected his client to be put under "judicial observation" to determine his mental...

Archived newsreels from around 65 years ago were shown for the first time on Friday, giving a glimpse of “happier” Maltese, who seemed to always have a smile on their faces in those days. The footage, spanning from 1955 to 1963, at a time when there was no TV, also includes an “exhibition” of the first beach concession in Golden Bay, featuring the novelty of deckchairs and umbrellas in neat rows as the first tourists started to visit the island in the mid-1950s and before sunbeds would hog its shores and elbow them out. Belonging to the Malta Cine Circle, the newsreels have not been seen since they were originally screened some seven decades ago, Vincent Lungaro Mifsud, chairman of the film-making club, said. ‘Newsreels show things we take for granted’ “They are a good journey to the past, showing things we take for granted,” he said. A selection of events from the four hours of footage, filmed by the Circle’s members, were screened June 24, at a show titled These Made the News, to commemorate its 70th anniversary. The events, which Lungaro Mifsud maintains few people around today would remember clearly, are making the news again as Times of Malta has reshot the same scenes 70...